Playing the Chinese waiting game

Handset providers are starting to get restless waiting for the Chinese government to make a decision on its domestic 3G technology.

Handset providers are starting to get restless waiting for the Chinese government to make a decision on its domestic 3G technology. The latest news (www.mobilehandsetdesignline.com/news/174400666) says that the government is preparing to launch the final trial of its 3G standard, known as TD-SCDMA. This trial is expected to last about six months.

According the report, the trial will serve as a "dress rehearsal," focusing on applications development and testing. Then, when most of the bugs are worked out, the government will issues licenses, probably sometime next year. Timing is critical, as they want to have all the pieces in place before the Beijing Olympics in the summer of 2008.

Can they get everything in place by then? Time will tell, but that time is beginning to run short.